Final Fantasy: Hidden Past
by xStriferx
Summary: Nine Heroes... all with one goal! To save the world of Vana'diel.
1. Chapter 1

**Final Fantasy: Hidden Past**

Chapter 1: The Crystal War

It all began with a stone, or so the legend says. In ages past, a sentient jewel, enormous and beautiful, banished the darkness. Its many-colored light filled the world with life, and brought forth mighty gods. Bathed in that light, the world entered an age of bliss, until after a time the gods fell into slumber. That world was called Vana'diel. In the eight hundred and sixty third year of the crystal era, Vana'diel was in the midst of a great war. Faced with invasion by the Shadow Lord and his hordes of Beastmen, the leaders of the enlightened peoples united their forces in desperate alliance. They were The Kingdom of San d'Oria, The Republic of Bastok, The Federation of Windurst, and The Grand Duchy of Jeuno. Together they struggled for survival in battle after battle as chaos engulfed the land.

The five races that compromised this army of well-trained fighters were each from different nations. Being from San d'Oria, the Elvaan were a race of proud warriors, they are also the founders of two legendary orders of knights in the nation, the Temple Knights, who were in charge of keeping order in the city, and the Royal Knights, in charge of expeditions for the king. Physically, the Elvaan are characterized by their tall, slender bodies and pointed ears. Their unshakable pride and faith in their beliefs is visible in each of their determined faces. Both males and females of the race excel in swordsmanship. Most Elvaan seem to eschew the business world, preferring an austere lifestyle as skilled swordfighters.

One of the two races that inhabited Bastok was the Galka, a hulking race of powerful warriors. The Galka's capital city, located in the Altepa Desert of Zepwell Island in the southwest corner of the Quon continent, fell to an attack from giant ant creatures six hundred years ago. The surviving Galka spread throughout Vana'diel and a large number of them eventually settled in Bastok. The sheer strength of their powerful physiques is second to none. They have used their skills to contribute to the construction and development of the numerous mines in Bastok. However, it seems that some Galka have less than fond feelings for members of the Hume race, which is the second of the two races that inhabit Bastok. Originating from the Bastok region, Humes have spread to the farthest reaches of Vana'diel. This race is characterized by their equally balanced abilities, moderate intelligence, and high level of skill in numerous areas. This combination of traits has played a large role in Bastok's growth into a prosperous nation of technology and industry.

The third nation of Windurst, which was isolated from San d'Oria and Bastok on the continent of Quon, lived entirely on their own continent called Mindartia. This nation was also comprised of two races, the first being the Tarutaru, a race of skilled magic users who call Windurst their home. Although the Tarutaru physically resemble children, their size does not reflect their age. Masters of the magical arts, the Tarutaru have honed their abilities through dutiful study of the world around them. Their dedication and hard work fueled the rapid reconstruction of Windurst after its destruction in the Crystal War. The Tarutaru enjoy a friendly relationship with the Mithra, who call Windurst their home as well. The Mithra are a predominantly female race of hunters who live alongside the Tarutaru in Windurst. Their ears, which give them spectacular hearing ability, and their long tails, which result in an unparalleled sense of balance, easily identify them. They are known for their energy, curiosity, and their penchant for causing playful mischief. The Mithra enjoy a friendly relationship with the Tarutaru, and this attitude of mutual cooperation has made Windurst a nation of peace and prosperity.

The final nation was the Grand Duchy of Jeuno. A booming city-state built upon Heavens Bridge, a structure that allows passage between the Quon and Mindartia continents. Jeuno's national policy is one of neutral mercantilism, and is governed by a set of relatively loose regulations. This encourages a constant flow of traders of all races, from Hume shopkeepers to Goblin merchants, to visit this colorful, cosmopolitan town, and thus is inhabited by many different kinds of people. Jeuno is also the only country to retain the ancient skills required to construct airships, which provides a rapid method of travel between nations.

It was in the black of night, at the San d'Orian stronghold known as Tavnazia, when the Orcs attacked. Anywhere from one hundred thousand to two hundred thousand Orcs, not including the massive war machines they constructed comprised the army that had come to destroy Tavnazia. The Orcs smashed their way into the barracks, and in front of them, stood an army of Tavnazia's finest. Comprised of Hume, Mithra, Tarutaru, Galka, and Elvaan, this army was one to be toiled with. The battle between the armies commenced.

Within the city walls, however, a young boy Hume named Aldo, and his older sister Emeline, tried desperately to find a way to escape underneath the city in the aqueducts that supposedly led to the main lands. The Orcs, however, found the aqueducts, and they surrounded Aldo and Emeline. Thinking fast, Emeline grabbed her brother's arm and took him behind a wooden door that led deep within the cave. Although Emeline had barricaded the door as best she could, she knew the Orcs would eventually get through. Grabbing her brother again, they ran down the cave until they came to an opening in the rocks about eight feet up the cave wall.

Trying to think, and then suddenly jumping in fear at the sound of the Orcs' growl that was heard throughout the cave, she leaned down to Aldo and said, "Aldo, you must listen, you have to climb." And saying this, she boosted her brother up to the opening. "Can you lower yourself down?" She questioned him.

"I think so." He answered, and proceeded to make his way down. About to climb out the opening, she was interrupted by the sound of Orcs coming toward her. She could see them, their repulsive faces with razor sharp teeth, and clutched in one hand, an axe. Emeline, paralyzed by the fear that was brought upon by the Orcs, could not move. "Sis, are you alright!" asked Aldo, frantically pounding on the wall of the cave. Emeline could not answer. "Emeline!" He shouted.

Emeline turned to the opening in the cave and proceeded to lift herself up to the opening. "Aldo, just run!" She Shouted.

The only thing he was able to see were a few tiny rocks that had fell from the opening in the cave. "Emeline?" He said nervously. Just then, the Orcs roared and reached out of the cave to try and get Aldo, but could not, for the opening was too high and the hole was not big enough for them to fit through. Aldo, struck with the fact that Orcs had just murdered his sister, ran away from the destroyed city of Tavnazia, hopelessly crying. He was able to see the city atop the hill that was directly above the city, surveying the city itself and its surroundings, he saw that the army of Vana'diel had lost and the Beastmen army had destroyed the land.

So Aldo ran away from that place and was found by the Jeuno Ducal Guards, then taken back to Jeuno to be raised there until his time for revenge arrived. The family he was adopted into also had a young girl by the name of Verena. This was Aldo's new sister, and, according to Aldo, there would be no force on the earth powerful enough to take her from him. Aldo's adoptive family was poor and so twenty years later, Aldo entered the smuggling business and eventually started his own underground facility underneath the streets of Jeuno known as The Tenshodo. Later, Aldo eventually established a Tenshodo in Bastok. Aldo's adoptive parents fell ill and died all so suddenly, leaving Aldo with the responsibility of caring for Verena, whom, upon entering Aldo's business, offered to communicate with the resident Beastmen, known as Goblins, in order to set up smuggling scams and such. The reason that Goblins could live in Jeuno is because they had a wide variety of life styles, some of the Goblins just chose to pillage and plunder helpless people on the road rather than start their own businesses in wealthy merchant towns such as Jeuno.

The next girl was a Hume named Lion who was born in the pirate town of Norg, just outside the outskirts of Khazam, the homeland of the Mithra, and also located on the island of Elshimo. She was daughter to the pirate leader named Gilgamesh, swashbuckler extraordinaire, who was also a former resident of Tavnazia before it was destroyed twenty years ago. Corresponding with the Tenshodo, Norg was the cornerstone of Aldo's operations in Jeuno. The pirates would go out to distant places and collect rare and valuable merchandise and bring it back to Gilgamesh, who thereafter sent it all straight to the Tenshodo for a certain price that Aldo was willing to pay, for he could sell it for about double the profit in Jeuno. Aldo and Gilgamesh also began hearing rumors in the great nations. It was then that Lion was sent to be their eyes and ears, finding out if there be any truth to these rumors and reporting back to Gilgamesh and Aldo what she had found out.

The next hero was a Galka named Zeid, born with the name War Cloud; he decided to change it after becoming a Dark Knight. Angered by the loss of his friend, Raogrimm the Talekeeper of the Galka, Zeid has submitted himself to the dark spirits of Vana'diel becoming what is known to be a Dark Knight. Although Zeid was once a Mythril Musketeer in Bastok, and was also the destroyer of the Shadow Lord along with another of the Mythril Musketeers, Volker, and Bastok's now chief engineer, Cid, he held no allegiance to anyone and only cared for the safety of his own being. Zeid gave up the role of Mythril Musketeer; however, Volker still holds a spot open for Zeid if he wishes to return.

The next six heroes were all from the island of Elshimo and came to the mainland from there, the first of which being the hero Strifer. Strifer was adopted into the Mithra Chieftainess' family after the Great War, in which many children were left homeless. Strifer's unparalleled tracking abilities and skill with a bow and arrow proved that he was quite an adversary to be reckoned with. After he had left Khazam and had made his way to the mainland, he had gone to the nation of Windurst and had been trained by Perih Vashi, a Mithra who had given up the sight of her own eyes in order to see the world as no one could ever see it and to train young heroes such as Strifer in the mighty resourcefulness of the Ranger. Strifer, however, has exceeded the limits of all of her previous students and may even be more powerful than Perih Vashi herself.

The Chieftainess also adopted the second of the six heroes after the Great War as well. He was a Galka named Deaths Blessing. Like Zeid, he too has found anger in himself and has also submitted his soul to the dark spirits of Vana'diel, and in return, they give him the power of the mighty Dark Knight. Deaths Blessing went to Bastok and, shortly after arriving at the mainland, was found and trained by Zeid himself in the dark arts of wielding the mighty weapon, the Scythe, and using his dark magic to the best of his ability making him one of the most powerful Dark Knights around.

The Chieftainess also adopted the third hero after the Great War. He was an Elvaan named Zinadae, and he strived to obtain power within the world he lived in, but refused to follow his adoptive brother, Strifer, onto the main continent of Vana'diel. He chose, instead, to stay in Khazam and try to find the rumored pirate town of Norg. He eventually found it when he was walking in the jungle. He was attacked by savage beasts and then rescued by swashbuckling pirates and taken to Norg. When Zinadae had made his way Norg, he had told the pirate leader, Gilgamesh, what he wanted to obtain more than anything in the world and was trained by Gilgamesh in the ways of the Samurai. Shortly after his training, he made his way to the main continent of Vana'diel and was hired by many to be an exterminator of monsters. With his Great Katana, he is one of the most feared demon hunters in all of Vana'diel.

The fourth of these six was another Elvaan named Garek. He was another one of the children adopted after the Great War. Seeking truth and justice after he had been told about what had happened to his parents, he traveled to the mainland and made his way to San d'Oria, where he had learned the ways of the Paladin. He was fortunate enough to be trained by one of the princes of San d'Oria, Prince Trion. Prince Trion was one of the best Paladins in the land, so it is no surprise that Garek turned out to be so good himself. Holding a mighty blade in one hand and a shield in the other, plus the ability to heal his own wounds with white magic, Garek was one of the finest swordsmen in all the land.

The fifth of these warriors was a Tarutaru named Tracy Lou. She was the fifth and final child adopted by the Chieftainess. After arriving at the mainland, she went with Garek on his quest for righteousness and arrived, like him, in San d'Oria. She met the lady knight of San d'Oria, Curilla head of the Royal Knights, and learned the ways of the mighty fighter-mage, the Red Mage. With her unimaginable powers and knowledge of Black and White magic, plus the swordsmanship skill she had gained, it made her quite an adversary.

The sixth hero and naturally born daughter of the Chieftainess of Khazam, a Mithra named Nenye, went to the mainland with Strifer for more knowledge of the world and its inhabitants. She traveled to Windurst along with Strifer and there she met up with the Star Sybil herself, who was the most powerful mage in all of Windurst given the power to foresee the future. Receiving training from the most experienced mage of her time, Nenye soon became a full fledged, not to mention destructive, Black Mage. With the power to decimate enemies with a single spell, but was also known to be an all-around sweetheart, Nenye was both loved and feared.

These nine were the warriors that would finally bring peace to Vana'diel, and start a new chapter in the book of the Gods.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: The Shadow Lord's Helper

Zeid was now deep within the Yagudo nesting grounds, known as Giddeus. He was there to rid the Yagudo stronghold of a dark dragon, which had already eaten very many Yagudo tribe members. Zeid was there because he had got called to Windurst to go on a quest that was requested by the Yagudo Chieftain himself. The Yagudo had called to Windurst for help, and then Windurst had turned to Zeid. Finding himself deeper in Giddeus than anyone had ever been, he felt he was getting close to the location of the dark dragon. Finally, he happened upon something that was quite unexpected. It was a Mithra known as Semih Lafihna, leader of the Sybil Guards in Windurst and right hand to the mysterious Star Sybil. Also trained by Perih Vashi, her skills with the bow were remarkable. She seemed to be facing a one-eyed monster with wings.

"Your reign of terror ends here!" Cried Semih Lafihna.

The evil eye just laughed. "Ha! Let's see how you fare against my pet!" All of a sudden, the earth began to rumble. "I summon you, Shadow Dragon!" The ground in front of Semih Lafihna burst open and out of it appeared a ghastly looking dragon, resembling the description given to Zeid.

Semih Lafihna jumped backwards, as to avoid the pieces of the earth in front of her being scattered. "You think this creature is any match for me?" she said as she took out her bow and fired one graceful arrow into the dragon's lower stomach. The dragon gave a great howl of pain. Semih Lafihna looked to her side to see only Zeid.

"Ah, what do we have here, a volunteer to slay the dragon? Well, I have much better things to be doing than this. This dragon is no match for my bow and it bores me. Perhaps it is worthy to fight you." With those final words, she threw down smoke bombs and disappeared behind the white smoke.

Zeid un-clasped his great sword from his back, ready to fight, "So, you're the one that has been sending your dragon out to reek havoc on these Yagudo!"

The Evil Eye smiled. "Why yes, it is the Shadow Lord's wish after all. They betrayed the Beastmen race by signing a peace treaty with the Federation of Windurst."

Zeid was shocked. "The Shadow Lord? What are you talking about! He was destroyed twenty years ago in the Great War!"

The Evil Eye sighed. "Why am I even talking to you? I should be destroying you! Shadow Dragon, attack the pathetic Galka!" The dragon flew up into the air and came down, hard, at the ground where Zeid was standing. Zeid jumped out of the way and delivered a horizontal slash to the Dragon, slicing it across the arm. The dragon gave out a roar, turned around, and clawed at Zeid, but was only blocked with Zeid's great sword. Zeid forced the dragon's claw off of his great sword and suddenly started manipulating the dark spirits of Vana'diel to enter his body and give him strength, most of these spirits being the ones of the fallen Yagudo at the hands of the Shadow Dragon. He then ran at the dragon with his great sword dragging behind him. The dragon was again up in the air and coming down hard on Zeid. As Zeid charged towards him, he jumped up into the air and passed the dragon so fast that no one even saw what had happened. Both the dragon and Zeid landed, facing opposite each other. The dragon's head then started slipping from his shoulders. Then, to the Evil Eye's surprise, the Shadow Dragon's head had fallen completely off.

Zeid, re-clasping his sword to his back, just grinned. "Barely even a challenge." He looked over and saw the Evil Eye trying to escape, "Oh no you don't!" He ran after the Evil Eye and caught him. Tackling him to the ground, he started pummeling the Evil Eye to the pulp.

Lion, also hearing of the mysterious dragon, ran to Giddeus and arrived there as soon as these events began to unfold. She ran up to Zeid and pulled back his fist. "Stop, he might be able to give us some information! Talk to him!"

Zeid, not knowing who this crazy woman was, threw her off of him. "Alright, I'll do that." Standing up and holding the Evil Eye by its wings, Zeid questioned him. "Tell me, what you were talking about when you said 'it's what the Shadow Lord wants!'" The Evil Eye, bruised and beat up, did not answer. "Answer me!" yelled Zeid. "Has the Shadow Lord returned?"

The Evil Eye cleared his throat. "He is not back yet, but he is in the process of coming back. This stunt that the Shadow Lord has sent me on was to distract the people of Vana'diel, but to also punish the Yagudo at the same time."

Zeid, still astonished that the Shadow Lord was on the verge of returning, said. "So we can still stop it? Tell me, what kind of magic can you use to bring the Shadow Lord back from the dead?" The Evil Eye, again, did not answer. "How would you plan on bringing the Shadow Lord back from the dead?"

The Evil Eye was fading fast. "Magicite… They will use Magicite."

Zeid, losing his temper, yelled. "Who is going to use the Magicite and where do they plan on gathering it?"

The Evil Eye was falling quiet. "The Orcs are storing their Magicite in Davoi, The Quadav has theirs in Beadeux, and the Yagudo have their Magicite in Castle Oztroja." The Evil Eye's breath began to stop. "You will never stop the return of the Shadow Lord. Just remember that it was I, the most loyal servant of the Shadow Lord, Seeker, who told you of the Shadow Lord's return." With Seeker's final words, his one big eye closed and he died.

Zeid, frustrated, threw him down and then turned to Lion. "Don't follow me, I am going to find that Magicite myself. I must stop the return of the Shadow Lord on my own." With his final words he walked out of the Yagudo stronghold, Giddeus.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: The Reuniting

Back in the Kingdom of San d'Oria, King Destin had the decision of letting one of his two sons rule in his stead, either Prince Trion or Prince Pieuje. With his daughter's 'Coming of Age' Ceremony, the decision would have to wait until later. It was at this time that the problems had begun. A strange Elvaan named Rochefogne had begun snooping about the kingdom and inquiring about the legendary sword, Lightbringer. The Papsque of the San d'Orian church had found a tablet long ago that had said, the one who unsheathes Lightbringer, shall be the new king. Believing this tablet and not knowing the location of Lightbringer, he had the king send out numerous search parties for the sword, but they had come back empty handed, or not at all, for they say a great beast guards the tomb where the sword is believed to be, King Ranperre's Tomb. It was when all this fuss started that the Elvaan, Rochefogne, had made his self public.

It was at Princess Claidie's "Coming of Age" Ceremony when Rochefogne had addressed King Destin. "Listen well King Destin, Lightbringer is never meant to be found, and if it is indeed found by your knights, let not one of them unsheathe it for its power is not meant to be used by any one person. The sword brings destruction and chaos; you must heed my warning Destin."

The Papsque stepped forward. "Listen here stranger, the tablet clearly reads that the one who unsheathes the sword will bring eternal peace and prosperity to his people!" He then turned to the King. "Do not listen to this stranger, your majesty; he knows not what he speaks of."

King Destin looked at Rochefogne. "You dare interrupt my daughter's ceremony for this! This outburst of lies! Knights, seize him!"

Rochefogne, speaking quickly, said, "Wait your majesty, I am brother to your wife, queen of San d'Oria and Princess of Tavnazia, I am more than formidable enough to be trusted. Please, your majesty, I must see her!"

With a wave of his hand, the knights had release Rochefogne and Destin walked up to him. "My wife is dead. She has been dead for ten years."

Rochefogne looked as though he had been shot with an arrow. "Dead? How, why did this happen?"

Destin, clearing his throat, said. "It was a mere sickness that took her from us. Now, about this Lightbringer business, you said that you were from Tavnazia, yes?"

Rochefogne stiffened up. "Yes I am sir."

Destined laughed. "Well boy, if you want to stop us from unsheathing Lightbringer, you must find it before we do."

Rochefogne, shocked, said. "Fine, but I will find it! I will find it before you!"

Destin, now walking back, whispered to the Papsque. "I'm sure he knows of our betrayal to Tavnazia during the Great War, if he gets that sword before we do, he will wreck havoc on San d'Oria."

"I couldn't agree more, your majesty, what do you propose we do about it?" asked the Papsque.

"Send the assassins; I'm sure you can handle that?"

"Yes sir" answered the Papsque, now turning toward Rochefogne. "Fine boy, we will play your game but expect no hesitation from us to kill you once we find it!

"Fine," Said Rochefogne. "Let the game begin." And with that, he disappeared in a sudden burst of smoke.

It was at this time, that a great panic had been caused in San d'Oria, and people all around Vana'diel had heard of it. Garek and Tracy Lou had heard of this and returned to San d'Oria, where Price Trion and Lady Curilla welcomed them. The other visitors were quite unexpected. Strifer, traveling with Nenye, arrived in San d'Oria and once they entered the castle to where the king's quarters were, they spotted Garek and Tracy Lou. Strifer, Nenye, Garek, and Tracy Lou were overjoyed to see each other again. When Garek and Tracy Lou had told them that they were the only two in the castle before them that had heard of the King's request, they knew it was going to be a short search party. Just then, an Elvaan wearing armor from the east arrived. At first, no one recognized him, but then Nenye jumped up out of her chair.

"Zinadae! Zinadae! Is that you?" Nenye asked.

The Elvaan turned. "Nenye…" and then looking over her shoulder, he saw the others. "Garek, Strifer, and Tracy Lou…? So, we meet again. You know, after you left us five years ago, mother was pretty upset."

Strifer stepped forward. "It was something I wanted to do Zinadae! Everyone just followed me because it was something they wanted to do too! You know you wanted off that island as much as I did. You were the most power hungry out of all of us, except for maybe Deaths Blessing. Why did you stay?"

Zinadae shook his head. "That's not the point. The point is, you broke mother's heart when you all left and she specifically told you that you couldn't leave the island."

Strifer smiled. "Well I see that didn't stop you. Besides, mother may have seemed sad that we left, but I'm sure she was only praying for our safety."

Zinadae laughed. "Do you really believe that? Well, all I know is that when you all left, mother banished you from Elshimo Island. She did the same thing to me when I left."

Strifer's was softening. "But why did you leave? What were you doing there all that time? Did you find that pirate town that was rumored to be true or something exciting like that?"

Zinadae gave a Strifer a nasty look. "As a matter of fact I did and I was trained there, trained to be a Samurai and in the art of the Great Katana, probably more than you'll ever know!"

Strifer recoiled and stroked his chin as gave a slight chuckle. "You're probably right, I'm sure you have more knowledge of being a Samurai, but if knowledge was measured in what we knew, I would beat you by a long shot!"

Solamis drew his Great Katana "Is that so? Well maybe I should stick this great katana up you're…"

Garek stepped in between the two of them as if to break up the fighting. "Hey hey, come on now guys, we're all here for one reason and I'm pretty sure whatever King Destin is going to have us do, we are going to have to work together on it."

As Garek said these words, the doors to the room were slammed open and a Galka entered the room. "I don't understand why you Elvaan have so many problems, there are better things I could be doing right now…" the Galka stopped in his tracks. "It's been about five years since I've seen all of you last…. I was hoping that I wasn't going to get any help. I wanted to do this mission on my own."

"Deaths Blessing?" asked Nenye. The Galka nodded. "Yes! I'm so happy! We're back together again, like a family!" she said as she hugged him.

Deaths Blessing sighed. "If I have no choice but to go with you guys, stay out of my way and let me do the fighting so we can get this all over with.

"I don't understand you guys!" shouted Tracy Lou. "You and Solamis are all like 'Let me do it by myself' and 'I'm better than you'. Gosh! Nenye gave you a hug Deaths Blessing, and you didn't even embrace it, and the only thing you can do Solamis is criticize us for leaving! Has the world really turned you two that bitter and cold? Maybe it was because you guys were by yourselves and had nobody sticking by your side. You see, I had Garek and Strifer had Nenye, and we've got along fine these five years. That's what it must've been…it must have been that you were alone…"

Zinadae, with great katana in hand, stepped towards Tracy Lou and yelled. "You have a small mind as well as a small physique!"

All of a sudden, Strifer lunged forward and knocked Zinadae across the room and, in one swift motion, pulled out his bow and notched an arrow.

"What is this?" asked Zinadae. "Defending your sister and at the same time threatening to kill your brother?"

Strifer was infuriated. "We're all family here; we have no reason to be angry with each other!"

Zinadae sighed and sheathed his Great Katana. "I wasn't going to hurt her, I just…"

"It doesn't matter!" Interrupted Strifer, "Just think about what you are doing before you do it next time"

Deaths Blessing was just leaning on the wall, arms crossed, watching the events unfold. "I have no ill will against any one; I have just been taught that being alone is much better than working with a team. No offense but you guys will slow me down, and I can't afford that."

Garek turned to Deaths Blessing. "Safety in numbers, my brother, is the way to go. Whatever the king shall have us do…"

In the middle of his sentence, the king had entered the room followed by Prince Trion, Prince Pieuje, Lady Curilla, and Sir Rahal, head of the temple knights. Looking around the room, and only seeing the six of them, he first said. "So, you're the only ones then?"

Strifer stepped forward. "Yes sir, we're it.

"We're all brothers and sisters!" Added Nenye, "And this meeting of yours has finally re-united us!"

Zinadae looked disgusted. Trion looked around the room, seeing the two Elvaan, the Tarutaru, the Hume, the Galka, and the Mithra. "Very…unusual, I could barely believe it when Garek told me his sister was Tracy Lou. Now, seeing all of these other races, I can believe it."

"Quite," Agreed Lady Curilla. The king looked at her and cleared his throat. "Of course, we are not here to talk about such matters. We called you here today because we are looking for the legendary blade, Lightbringer."

Garek looked appalled. "I have heard many things of this sword, it is said that the mighty dragon king, Ranperre, used it over one-hundred years ago."

The king looked at Garek. "Yes, our historians have recovered that piece of information as well. The Papsque found a tablet, and it says that the one who unsheathes the sword shall indeed bring peace and prosperity to his kingdom. Therefore, I am going to use the sword in order to decide which of my two sons shall rule." He said, gesturing to Trion and Pieuje. "The only problem with that is we can't find the sword, it seems to have been lost after the Crystal War. However, rumor has it that it is in the King Ranperre's Tomb, but his tomb is guarded. Some say by a mythical beast, other's say a series of traps…"

Garek stepped forward. "If I may, your majesty," Destin motioned for him to continue. "On my travels with Tracy Lou, I have found out much about the San d'Orian royal family. Legend has it that long ago, King Ranperre saved a dragon from certain death, and in return, the dragon agreed to protect his tomb for all eternity."

Destin, surprised, chuckled. "Well my lad, you seem to know a lot more about us than we know."

Garek, now proud, said, "Not really sir, just some information I picked up alongside the road."

Zinadae stood up from the chair he was sitting in and said calmly. "So, we're fighting a dragon. By ourselves or were you going to send some of your knights to accompany us?"

Deaths Blessing stepped forward. "Either way, I don't need your help to defeat an insignificant dragon, you can all just watch on the sidelines.

Destin laughed. "I'm afraid, that if it is a dragon, it is much more than insignificant. I have already sent a number of my units inside the dragon king's tomb and none have returned to San d'Oria. Therefore we are convinced it is in Ranperre's Tomb."

Zinadae, now infuriated, said. "And what did your units consist of? Forty? Fifty men? How do you expect the six of us to complete this task?"

Trion spoke up. "Garek was trained by myself and Tracy Lou was trained Lady Curilla, they are more than formidable opponents. I'm not sure about the rest of you…"

Zinadae interrupted him. "Well if you must know, I was trained by Gilgamesh of Norg!"

Trion laughed "I have never seen such a place, only heard of it in fairy tales…"

Zinadae drew his Katana at these words. "Well maybe you need to look harder!"

Sir Rahal drew his sword and placed it in between the two. "We are not here to argue amongst each other! We are here to talk about the Lightbringer!" he then sheathed his blade.

The king nodded and then handed a map to Strifer. "There, you have your mission, good luck and safe travels to you." He, Trion, Pieuje, Curilla, and Rahal turned towards the door and walked out of the room.

At first, they all looked at each other in disbelief of what they were told to do, then Strifer just smiled and said. "At least we got a map


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: The Deserted Isle

Rochefogne has made his way to a desolated island just on the outskirts of Jeuno, which is where he believed the location of Lightbringer was. He searched tirelessly for hours, while being followed by the San d'Orian assassins. When the assassins saw that Rochefogne could not find the location, they took the opportunity upon themselves to strike.

Rochefogne stopped to rest on the side of the island, looking outward towards the sea. Then he heard footsteps behind him and swung around only to see the three Elvaan assassins. "Prepare to die, Rochefogne! Your days of terrorizing the Kingdom of San d'Oria are over!"

Rochefogne took a step forward, as though ready to fight off his pursuers. "You have no idea what you are doing; the royal families' judgment is clouded by their obsessive need for Lightbringer! If you kill me here, there is nothing to stop San d'Oria from being destroyed in utter chaos!"

As Rochefogne drew his weapons, a mysterious character in gold armor approached and stood in front of Rochefogne, protecting him from the assassins. "Stop what you are doing now, assassins of San d'Oria! I believe what Rochefogne says about Lightbringer is true!"

The assassin just smiled. "It does not matter what you think Princess Claidie, your father and brother gave us explicit orders to deal with this Rochefogne!"

The golden warrior was shocked. "I'm not… how could you think I was the princess?"

The assassin just grinned. "Don't worry princess, I'm sure your actions are noble, I will not tell the king, but our purpose still remains, we must destroy this rogue!" He then charged at Rochefogne, knocking him off the cliff."

Princess Claidie screamed. "No! How could you! How could my brother and father. No…"

The assassin put one hand on Claidie's shoulder. "I suggest you get back to the castle now, princess, so that your absence is not discovered. As for me, I will see if Rochefogne is indeed dead before we leave this place."

As Claidie took off running back to San d'Oria, the assassin went down the side off the side of the cliff to see if he could find Rochefogne's body to take back to the king. After awhile, the assassin came back up and said to the two other assassins. "I could not find him; the best things to do are to just return to the king and tell him that we took care of him and hope he believes us."

Even though a band of savages, they still had some type of knightly order, so his comrades replied to him with a "Yes sir!"


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: King Ranperre's Tomb

Deep within the catacombs of King Ranperre's Tomb, Strifer and the others were still unable to find the sword. "We've been searching this tomb for hours," Zinadae. "It's obviously not here, we might as well just return to San d'Oria."

Strifer, stopping in his tracks, said. "Wait, did you hear that?" There was a slight sound of footsteps that got louder as they approached Strifer's location. It made the cave shake and it seemed as if an earthquake was upon them.

Suddenly, the cave wall was burst open by something quite unexpected from the six. It was the Dragon of King Ranperre's Tomb. Nenye's scream was heard throughout the cave and the dragon took one look at them and sent a streaming line of fire from his mouth, heading their way. Tracy Lou cast a force field around them and the fire was neutralized by the power of the spell. The spell could not hold off the dragon for long, because his constant clawing and biting at the force field caused it to disappear. They all jumped out of the way of the raging dragon and Strifer notched an arrow in his bow and fired, sticking the dragon right in the eye. Although blinded by the arrow in one eye, the dragon could still see Strifer through his other and it proceeded to charge at him. Strifer then took out another arrow from his quiver and held it above his head, while it was infused with dark energy, and then fired the arrow. It hit the dragon square in the chest but it did not stick in for it changed to dark vapor that spread throughout the dragon's body causing it to be bound in one spot. It was Strifer's special attack that he had acquired from his training with Perih Vashi, the technique Shadowbind. It then gave Deaths Blessing, Zinadae, and Garek an opportunity to attack it. Deaths Blessing called on the power of the dark spirits and then started slicing uncontrollably at the dragon with his scythe causing the dragon to turn towards him. Zinadae did the same, but then used his special ability in which he jumped into the air above the dragon with his Great katana and called upon the demon arts of another dimension. There appeared a dark light above the dragon and out of it appeared dark energy from the demon's of the other dimension. Deaths Blessing couldn't take much more of the devastating attacks that came from the dragon's mighty claws and sharp bites. Just then, Garek stepped in front of him, covering him from the dragon's deadly attacks, while at the same time swinging at the dragon with his mighty blade. Strifer, still shooting the dragon full of arrows, was standing back next to Nenye, who called upon the spirits of the Earth, Fire, Wind, and Water to cast mighty spells. She used a water spell on the dragon, and large amounts of water materialized before Nenye. She then controlled it and sent it hurling towards the dragon and knocking the dragon back against the cave wall; the others followed it and continued slicing at it. Tracy Lou took this opportunity to superficially blind the dragon in its other eye. She cast enfeebling magic on the dragon, including the effects of paralysis, and also spells that weakened an enemy over time. She and Nenye could also bind the dragon. Much like Strifer's Shadowbind, the effect of bind rooted the enemy in once place at a time. The effect of Shadowbind was wearing off and the dragon could now move freely. It started advancing on Nenye, but Nenye dodged the attacks with grace. Mithra were also known for their supreme agility. The dragon's supreme will to live, alone, proved more than formidable for the six. Strifer then had his bow super powered by the earth spirit of Vana'diel and one of his arrows was empowered. He took aim and fired, hitting the dragon spot on in the chest, the arrow sinking rather deep. It seemed he had pierced the heart because, before anyone had knew what had happened, the dragon fell over, finally dead.

Deaths Blessing was profusely wounded and turned to Garek. "Thanks for covering me from that dragon, I owe you one. I don't know how much longer I could've lasted with that dragon on my case."

Garek smiled. "Well maybe this has showed you that there is more to fighting than just one person. It is a team effort."

Deaths Blessing nodded and Strifer turned to the cave wall where the dragon had emerged. "There. That must be where Lightbringer is, and also the location of Ranperre's final resting place." The rest nodded and followed him. As they walked down the dark corridor, they finally spotted a tomb stone, and leaning on it, the sword Lightbringer.

Returning to San d'Oria, Princess Claidie visited her mother's grave, which was surrounded by a beautiful bed of flowers. "What am I to do mother? I believed your brother, Rochefogne, was right. Now he is dead, and if he was right, very dark times lie ahead for the Kingdom of San d'Oria" Suddenly, an Orc appeared behind the princess. "No, how…how did you get by the castle guards? Get away don't come near me! Help me!"

Just as the Orc drew his sword back and was ready to strike, it fell to the ground as the assassin appeared behind it and stabbed it in the back. Now, blood running down from the Orc's wound, the assassin stepped over the bright red puddle and said. "Princess, I need to talk to you."

Princess Claidie scolded him. "Now you want to talk! After killing Rochefogne, now you want to talk?" but the assassin just smiled.

Arriving back in San d'Oria, Strifer and the others were greeted by Lady Curilla and Sir Rahal, "Amazing!" Sir Rahal declared. "We have finally found it, now the destiny of San d'Oria can be revealed at last!"

Lady Curilla smiled. "Follow us to the king, the entire royal family, including the knights and the Papsque; await your arrival in the cathedral." As they followed Lady Curilla through the streets of San d'Oria, many Elvaan cheered as they saw the sword in Strifer's hand. The Elvaan had followed and cheered the six on all the way to the cathedral.

As soon as they entered the Cathedral, the sword was given to the king, which he gave to the Papsque who then took it up to his chambers. King Destin looked at them and said. "You are truly heroes among heroes! You have done the people of San d'Oria a great deed! The tablet requires that the Papsque bless the sword before letting either of my two sons try and unsheathe it."

Just then, the Papsque came out with the sword and gave it to Trion. "You try first."

Prince Trion nodded. "Alright, here it goes…"

"Not so fast!" Interrupted the assassin, who walked in to the cathedral with his blade to Princess Claidie's throat. "Hand over Lightbringer, or I'll cut the Princess' throat!"

The Papsque was shocked. "What has gotten into you Lieutenant?"

The assassin smiled. "Your Lieutenant was so helpless, he begged for his life when I threw him over the cliff!"

Destin was shocked. "No, it can't be… Rochefogne?"

Rochefogne smiled. "Correct King Destin! When your pathetic Lieutenant went down the side of the cliff to see if he could find my body, I, instead, threw him over the cliff!"

Trion, with his head down, said. "Ok, I'll give it to you… just don't hurt my sister."

He then threw the sword to Rochefogne and Rochefogne let go of the princess. "Wise decision Prince Trion." Smiled Rochefogne.

Solamis just shook his head. "So, we went through all that trouble of retrieving Lightbringer, and it gets stolen. Great, just great!"

The Papsque just chuckled. "Maybe not." He said as he pulled the real Lightbringer from his cloak. "Prince Trion, draw the sword and send this loony to his grave!"

Prince Trion caught the sword. Rochefogne was shocked. "What? No! Claidie, now!"

Princess Claidie reached into a bag that contained dream flower pollen, which was especially good for paralyzing things, her mother's favorite flower being used as a weapon. Prince Trion attempted to unsheathe the sword. "Now Rochefogne, feel the power of Lightbringer." As he unsheathed the sword only a quarter of the way, a bright light illuminated from it, but then Claidie through the powder at her brother and he dropped the sword. "What? Claidie, what are you doing?"

Just then, Orcs in hiding, hearing of the finding of Lightbringer, burst in the cathedral and before anyone had known what had happened, snatched the sword. The king yelled. "Seize that creature!"

"No!" Screamed Rochefogne. Running up to the Orc and attempting to kill it, the Orc only hit Rochefogne with Lightbringer, sending him soaring across the room and into one of the stone pillars, and then continued its destructive path.

King Destin, enraged by this most unexpected phenomenon, said. "Send off one of the scouts to follow that Orc! See where he is taking Lightbringer!" He then turned to Claidie, who was kneeling before Rochefogne, who was indeed still breathing, but badly injured. "I hope you have a good explanation for what you just have done."

Princess Claidie, with tears in her eyes, said. "Father, I only did that because…well because, Rochefogne was right. That sword would bring destruction to the city of San d'Oria."

Rochefogne looked up at the king. "I need rest, but first I will tell you what I know about Lightbringer. Thirty years ago, the Lightbringer was sent to Tavnazia. Ten years had passed without so much as a knock on our castle door, and then suddenly one night, the Orcs attacked with their war machines. That night the royal family, in Tavnazia, was able to escape through the secret passages beneath the city. I was charged with the responsibility of guarding Lightbringer, and then after the battle was over and the Orcs had destroyed the city, I looked back to my fair city in ruins. Seeing my city in such ruin, I let my anger control me and I unsheathed the sword as to get revenge on the Orcs. The sword not only destroyed the remains of the Orc army that had attacked Tavnazia, but it also sent the city of Tavnazia to the bottom of the sea. Before I knew what had happened, I woke up, alone, on the coast of the Quon continent.

King Destin was marveled at this new discovery. "So that is why we haven't been able to find the ruins… They are on the sea floor. "

Rochefogne nodded. "Some believe it was the Orc's secret weapon that malfunctioned and sent the city to the bottom of the sea, but they overlooked one small figure, me. The whole plot of finding Lightbringer and unsheathing it was a clever scheme of the Archduke of Jeuno, Kam'lanaut. He planted the tablet you found! I'm not sure what his intentions are, but they can't be good."

King Destin thought on this. "Either way, I can not pass judgment on him. If not for him, we would not have developed much of what we did during the Great War, but I shall think on it."

Suddenly, the doors of the cathedral slammed open and there stood the scout. "My lord, they have not gone far, only to the lands of Xarcabard and into the sacred crag, Fei'yin!"

The King now a sense of determination in his voice, said. "Send every available solider we have to the sacred ruins, Fei'yin! We must get Lightbringer back as soon as possible!"

Trion stepped forward. "Father, allow me to lead the front assault! I must have my vengeance on the Orcs as well!"

Pieuje was shocked at these words. "Brother, that's almost suicide!"

Trion turned to Pieuje. "And what about the others put at the front line in previous battles, are they committing suicide as well!"

Pieuje went silent. King Destin turned to Trion. "You are aware of the consequences if you are to be killed?" Trion nodded. "Alright," said Destin. The Papsque and Pieuje were shocked. "Pieuje, you stay here, for if your brother falls in battle, Altana willing he won't, then you will be made the new king." Pieuje nodded. Then King Destin turned to the six. "I know I have already asked a lot out of you, and put you in extreme danger. You must also find the royal family rather pathetic, but I must ask you, will you go to the front lines with my son?"

Strifer nodded. "Yes sir, we will do our best to make sure that nothing happens to your son."

Zinadae laughed, "Nothing bad as in he won't get banged up too bad while we're on the job.

Nenye smiled. "You can count on us, your majesty!"

Garek saluted the king. "I will not allow any harm to come to my former master, your son, I assure you."

Deaths Blessing gave a friendly sigh. "Well, I guess you Elvaan need more help than you know. Sure, count me in."

Tracy Lou winked at him. "You can count on me, your majesty. I may be small but I pack quite a punch!"

King Destin smiled. "Excellent! Thank you so much! The royal family owes you much!"

Lady Curilla stepped forward. "If I may, your majesty, I also wish to be placed on the front lines with Prince Trion."

Rahal also stepped forward. "And me, your majesty."

King Destin nodded to both of them. "Very well, you shall be placed on the front lines. Good luck and May the Goddess, Altana, protect you."

They all saluted and walked out of the Cathedral.

As they all exited the cathedral, Strifer stopped and looked at the erected statue of Altana. "The Archduke of Jeuno, huh? What could he possibly have to do with this?"


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: The Magicite

Zeid was now entering the feared Orc stronghold, Davoi. Careful to avoid Orc detection, he made his way deep within Davoi to a sacred cave where the Magicite was held. It was imbedded in a large rock that was formed right along with the cave itself. Zeid used his great sword to try and pry the Magicite loose. It worked and the Magicite fell to the ground. As Zeid touched the emerald green stone, he suddenly found himself in Bastok.

The thing he noticed was that he didn't feel the heat of the sun beating down on him, and no one in Bastok seemed to pay any heed to his presence. Zeid turned around and saw Raogrimm, his old friend that was believed to have died thirty years ago. It seemed that Raogrimm was packing for something, but what wondered Zeid.

Zeid approached Raogrimm slowly. "Raogrimm, what's the packing for? Where are you going?" Raogrimm only ignored Zeid, as if he hadn't even heard him.

Suddenly, Zeid heard a knock at Raogrimm's door. He turned around and he saw Corneilia, the Hume girl that had fallen in love with Raogrimm. Raogrimm stood up and walked up to Corneilia, walking right through Zeid in the process. "I'm very pleased that I am able to accompany you and Ulrich to the northern lands, I wouldn't want anything to happen to you," Said Raogrimm.

Corneilia smiled. "Yes, I am very happy that President Karst allowed you to accompany Ulrich and me. But the other countries have received word of our expedition and requested the sending of scouts from their countries as well. From San d'Oria, Francmage was sent to accompany us, and from Windurst, Iru-Kuiru the Tarutaru and Rabntah the Mithra."

Raogrimm was shocked for a moment and then said. "Ok then, I will bring supplies enough for three extra people."

Corneilia gave out a slight giggle. "Oh no need to be so thoughtful, Raogrimm, I'm sure if they are in their right minds, they will have brought their own supplies!" Corneilia just smiled. "That's what I love about you, always so caring about others."

Raogrimm blushed and turned back to pack his things. "So when are we leaving?"

"In about two hours." She reminded him. "Be ready."

Unbeknownst to Corneilia and Raogrimm, Zeid noticed a figure listening in. It was a Hume man, about the age of thirty. It seemed this conversation infuriated him and he ran off so as not to be seen by Corneilia when she exited Raogrimm's house.

After Corneilia had left, a younger Galka, about Raogrimm's age, entered the room

"Raogrimm, you can't go! That land out there is unknown to everyone, there could be some really bad stuff out there! Besides, I don't trust that Hume, Ulrich. I don't care if he is leader of the Mythril Musketeers or not!

It was then that Zeid examined the younger Galka and concluded that the Galka was indeed he… It was Zeid, thirty-five years ago.

"It's…It's me. Oh Raogrimm, why didn't I stop you." Zeid growled loudly, but neither Raogrimm nor the younger version of Zeid paid any attention to him, instead Raogrimm walked up to the younger Zeid.

"Don't worry about me, my friend. Ulrich is an honorable man, as are all the Humes. You should learn to live with them."

The Younger Zeid grew angry. "Even though they suppress us? I think not, I would rather eat dirt! Besides, it isn't just Ulrich, its Corneilia, this girl that has supposedly taken your heart! She is going to be the end of you, Raogrimm can you not see that?"

Raogrimm just laughed. "There are many things you need to learn about the heart, my friend. It can be taken by anyone, at any given moment, and when it is, you have to embrace it and simply let it guide you."

The young Zeid simply gave up and let out a deep sigh. "Raogrimm, you always did have a way with words. Fine, go on this expedition, but when you get back, we're going to have a serious talk about those Humes!"

Raogrimm nodded. "Fair enough. We will 'talk' about them."

Suddenly, the vision ended, and Raogrimm was in the cave of Davoi, holding the emerald green Magicite in his hand. "So, you know that Galka in the vision?"

Zeid quickly turned to see Lion. "I told you not to follow me; I have to do this on my own!" Calming down now, he said. "Yes, I knew the Galka in that vision. It was the Talekeeper of the Galka, Raogrimm. He was my very dear friend. What happened to him and the rest of his party was unfair, it served no purpose!"

Lion smiled. "We shall soon see, Zeid. I'm guessing that the other Magicite will also have visions like this. They might give you the answers you seek."

Zeid and Lion made their way to Beadeux, where they made their way to another desolated cave area with another emerald green Magicite stuck into a rock. Zeid pried the stone loose, touched it, and was in a vast wasteland of snow, and right in front of him, Corneilia, Raogrimm, Ulrich, Francmage, Iru-Kuiru, and Rabntah advanced in their expedition.

Ulrich, the leader of the Mythril Musketeers at that time, suddenly had an idea to get rid of Raogrimm. "How about we split up, to cover more ground? Raogrimm and I will go check out the south portion of this wasteland while the rest of you check out the northern part.

Raogrimm nodded. "Sounds good to me, we will cover a lot more ground and faster too!"

As Ulrich and Raogrimm headed off to the south, Corneilia could almost sense what was going on and said. "I'm going to go off and try to catch up with Raogrimm and Ulrich; it might be safer if each group is made of three people, rather than four and two."

The others nodded and Corneilia started following them, making sure to stay far enough behind so that Raogrimm and Ulrich wouldn't notice that she was there. At the bottom of the fairly deep hill, Ulrich stopped and snuck up behind Raogrimm and hit him in the back of the head with the end of his sword then sliced Raogrimm's legs and temporarily paralyzed him from the waste down. Letting out a painful roar, Raogrimm weakly said. "Ulrich, what are you doing?"

Ulrich simply chuckled. "You thought you could take her from me, didn't you? A woman loving a Galka rather than a Hume is unorthodox! A woman loving a Galka is insane! I will show her that I am the only one for her!" Drawing back his sword, ready to plunge it into Raogrimm's stomach, Corneilia jumped in front of Ulrich and was stabbed instead. Ulrich, seeing what he had done, sheathed his sword and ran.

Corneilia fell to the ground and Raogrimm embraced her. "No! Corneilia, don't leave me, your all that I have." Cornelia, too weak to even talk, just smiled and put her hand on Raogrimm's cheek one last time. Then, her pulse stopped and her body turned to ice. "Corneilia, darling, no!"

It was then that the vision stopped. Zeid was astonished. "That Hume… It was Volker's nephew that killed my best friend Raogrimm!"

Lion came up to him and put her hand on his shoulder. "There is still one more Magicite that we must visit. Perhaps it will tell us more of what happened." Zeid nodded, and together they went to the last location of the final Magicite, Castle Oztroja.

When they arrived to the room where the Magicite was kept, they did the usual. Zeid plucked it out and then touched it. He was now, again, in the snow, but this time he could only see Ulrich, Francmage, Iru-Kuiru, and Rabntah.

Ulrich ran up to the others. "It was terrible! We were traveling and then Raogrimm and Corneilia fell off a cliff!"

Francmage was shocked. "That's terrible! We must attempt to find their bodies at the bottom of the cliff, they deserve a proper burial!"

Iru-Kuiru jumped up and down. "Hey, down here! If they just slipped off the cliff, it is most likely to happen to us too!"

Rabntah nodded. "Yes. Perhaps it is best just to return to our home countries and just explain what happened."

Ulrich, eager to get the bodies so he wouldn't be blamed for their deaths, said. "Well, you two go then. Francmage and I shall see to their proper burial!"

Iru-Kuiru was stunned. "I will not be talked to in that tone of voice. As a matter of fact, I think I will return to Windurst!"

Rabntah nodded. "Me too!"

Ulrich and Francmage made their way down the side of the mountain, but when they got to the place that Ulrich had slain Raogrimm, their bodies were nowhere to be found. "We've searched everywhere." Said Francmage, "We should have listened to the Mithra and Tarutaru," Francmage sighed.

Ulrich just smiled. "Should of, would of, could of. Oh well, I guess we'll just walk back on our own then."

Suddenly, the vision changed from Xarcabard to San d'Oria. There was King Destin "Where is Francmage? This had better not have been a trap set for us!" he yelled.

Just then, a scout entered the room. "Your highness, I believe this is much more than just a trap. Reports say that Iru-Kuiru and Rabntah of Windurst have not returned either, as well as Raogrimm, Corneilia, and Ulrich of Bastok.

The king sighed. "Francmage, one of our best warriors, dead just like that, how disappointing. It seems as though that wasteland was a bit too much for them to handle alone."

The vision suddenly stopped. "At least that Hume didn't make it back either." Smiled Zeid and then turned to Lion and said. "Alright, I have all three pieces of Magicite, so according to the information that Seeker gave me, the Shadow Lord should be stopped from returning. However, his tomb is in Castle Zvhal. I must return there and see if he is alive. For all I know, that Seeker could have been giving me false statements, and that would mean I would have to defeat the Shadow Lord again."

Lion was surprised. "Again? What do you mean? Have you fought him before?"

Zeid ignored the fact that she said that and just continued. "I'm going to do this by myself, so don't follow me, and if you do, stay out of my way.

Zeid walked out of the Castle but Lion only grinned. "Not follow you, ay? Fat chance big boy, I need to find out more about what is going on here."


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: The Ruins of Fei'yin

In the ancient ruins Fei'yin, located deep within Xarcabard, Trion and the rest of his men, including Strifer, Deaths Blessing, Zinadae, Nenye, Tracy Lou, and Garek, were preparing for the final battle against the Orcs. Suddenly, out of the shadows, appeared none other than Prince Pieuje. Trion was shocked. "Brother, why are you here? You must remain in San d'Oria with father…"

Pieuje stopped him and simply said. "I fear, brother, that if we fail here today, we will not have a kingdom to fight for. Therefore, I have come to bestow upon you my blessing." While Trion being the fierce warrior that he is, Pieuje was just the opposite, a white mage that specialized in healing and protecting others. Pieuje started muttering strange words and when he did it a strange veil of protection was cast onto Trion. "There now, my brother, I have bestowed you with the best protection that I can muster. Now for the sake of San d'Oria, get Lightbringer back! I shall now return to San d'Oria and await your return, good luck brother."

Trion smiled. "Fear not. I will return, make no mistake. Thank you my brother." Pieuje then cast a spell on himself. He was engulfed in a white light and when the light disappeared, so did he. Trion then turned to the rest of his unit. "We are the front line and if things go right we shall be the only ones that have to enter this wretched place. There are twelve of us, which allow us to be able to send two parties of six in opposite directions." He pointed to Strifer. "You and your…family shall take the western corridor. Myself, Curilla, Rahal, and the three best royal knights, under Curilla of course, shall take the eastern corridor." He then turned to Strifer's unit and saluted them. "Good luck." He then turned and ran down the eastern corridor, followed by his unit.

Strifer looked down the dark western corridor and then turned to the others. "Alright guys, we may be in for more than we have ever dealt with before, but don't fret, for it can't be as bad as it seems." He then turned back towards the corridor and started marching.

Zinadae suddenly spoke up. "Wait guys! I have something to say. Just in case these are the last moments we spend together, just know that even though I didn't look it, I was really overjoyed to see you guys when we met back in San d'Oria."

Deaths Blessing gave a sigh. "Yeah, me too, I guess it was just all of those years of solitude." He then turned to Tracy Lou. "You were right."

Tracy Lou smiled. "I'm glad you guys are willing to accept the fact that I was right. Remember that time in Khazam…"

Garek stopped her. "We will have plenty of time to talk once we defeat this Orc. Now we must press on!"

Nenye jumped with joy. "Oh yes! We will show that meanie-weenie who is boss, and we'll do it united as a family! I know we can do it guys!"

Strifer nodded. "Right, we will do this together, as a family." And then he turned again, and they all marched on down the corridor.

After about a half an hour of walking, they came to a fork in their path. One way led to a solid gold door and the other way was simply the continuation of their path. "Well isn't this obvious," Said Zinadae. "You think maybe they would have made it a little more difficult to find."

He began to walk down the path of the golden door when Strifer spotted something. "Watch your step!" he said, pulling Solamis back from his path. At the bottom of the wall was a trip wire made out of spider's web. Normally, a mere mortal would not be able to see this, but Strifer's superb vision was able to see the thread, even though so small. "We must not trip this wire; it is most definitely a trap." Strifer then looked at the golden door. "That is where we need to go, just don't touch the wire."

Carefully lifting themselves over the wire, they now proceeded to open the golden door, but it just slid open automatically, as if someone was expecting them. They each walked in, very wary of their surroundings. They kept walking and eventually found themselves in a very open room that seemed empty.

All of a sudden, from out of the shadows, there appeared the Orc Chieftain. "What this? A group of meddlesome adventurers trying take sword away! I have no time to deal with you, puny adventurers; I leave you to play with my minions!"

Just then, Strifer and the others found themselves surrounded by Orcs in every direction and the Orc Chieftain walked away, back into the shadows. Strifer gave a sigh and notched an arrow. "Looks like a lot of blood will be spilt this day!"

Zinadae, sounding more determined than ever before, said. "If we have to go through these in order to get to the Orc Chieftain, then I consider this to be quite a warm-up!"

Suddenly, the Orcs attacked and Strifer jumped up into the air and, using the Orcs' heads, ran out of the circle they had created to trap them. Looking back, Strifer only saw the Orcs' vicious attempt to rip apart the others. The next thing he saw was all of the Orcs in the circle flying backwards in all directions and Deaths Blessing swinging his Scythe madly. Strifer then took this opportunity to shoot his arrows at the blown back Orcs. He would take one after another out with each of the arrows that he had shot, but they were advancing on him, and quickly. Garek quickly jumped in front of Strifer and covered him from the Orcs. Nenye called on the power of fire, and with a devastating blast, hurled a blazing hot line of fire towards the Orcs. Tracy Lou then drew her sword, and although small and not very strong, was very fast. She sliced at the Orcs one after another, gracefully dodging the attacks of the bloodthirsty Orcs.

Meanwhile, Trion and his unit had come to the opening with the golden door. "Stay here." He said to the others. "I'm going to see if it's safe." Then he walked into the narrow pathway leading to the golden door, and unknowingly tripped the spider web wire. The walls in the narrow pathway began to close and Trion ran towards the golden door as quickly as he could. The trap had been tripped, and luckily Trion had survived. The others, however, had been trapped on the other side of the wall.

"There seems to be no way to get back over there on this side!" yelled Trion to the others. "I'm going to go through this golden door and see where it leads!"

"Trion!" Shouted Curilla, "Be careful!"

"No worries." Said Trion, "I'll be back before you know it!"

Trion had then gone to the golden door leading to where Strifer and the others were fighting. He entered the room and saw them take down the last of the Orcs that the Orc chieftain had sent down on them.

The Orc Chieftain, seeing this, appeared once again from the shadows. "You have defeated best warriors; memories of brethren will live forever, however, you will not! I underestimated you puny adventures, but I not make mistake again!"

He then drew his sword. Trion, seeing this, took it upon himself to say something. "Stead thy hand, Orc! You are no match for a Prince of San d'Oria!"

The Orc was surprised, as well as Strifer and the others, who turned towards the opening of the room. "A Prince would fight me? Puny prince no match for me!"

Trion readied himself for battle. "We shall see, Orc! Prepare to die!"

With those words, Trion had charged the Orc Chieftain, but the Orc Chieftain had delivered a devastating blow to Trion's breastplate, sending him flying backwards. Garek, Deaths Blessing, and Zinadae approached the Orc Chieftain and started slicing away at him. Strifer stood back and shot arrows into his body alongside Nenye, who was casting her most powerful spells on the Orc, and Tracy Lou, who was enfeebling the Orc with her paralyze and blind spells. This Orc was no pushover; however, he simply took his sword and swung it in a spinning motion, which sent Garek, Deaths Blessing, and Zinadae into three separate corners of the room. The Orc, then, started advancing on Nenye, Strifer, and Tracy Lou. Strifer, thinking quickly, took out an arrow and the charged it with dark energy and then shot it at the Chieftain.

"Puny binding arrows no stop me! I invincible and can not be beaten!" He then swung his sword and sent Nenye and Tracy Lou flying backwards. He then raised his sword once again to deliver a devastating vertical slash downwards towards Strifer. Looking as though Strifer would most likely be stabbed, Zinadae ran up and locked swords with the Orc Chieftain just as soon as Deaths Blessing got there and sliced the Orc's arm with his scythe. Trion then ran up to the Orc and jumped up as he brought his sword, in an upwards-vertical line, up the Orcs body, impaling him in many places.

The Orc then turned to Trion and was about to slice at him, but Garek stepped in front of Trion and simply parried the attack with his sword. He then called on the light spirits of Vana'diel and was engulfed in a brilliant white light. "How is this for Invincible?" The Orc hit Garek repeatedly, but no damage or proof of damage had appeared on Garek, and he remained untouched, protected by a magical force field of some sort. "You have now witnessed the glory of the Paladin first hand, Orc!"

The Orc was getting aggravated. "Garr! I no can damage you!" It was then that Strifer shot an arrow right into the Orc's leg, which sent him to the floor. Nenye bombarded him with earth elemental spells and both Zinadae and Deaths Blessing stuck their weapons in his back. He gave out a great roar and fell to the ground. "You puny adventurers very strong…But the Orc name will live on through eternity!"

Then Prince Trion stepped forward. "In the name of San d'Oria, I take your life and end your reign in this world." With those final words, Prince Trion swung his sword horizontally through the Orc, slicing his head clean off. "That was some battle." He said to the others, gasping for air.

Nenye smiled, "We sure showed that big meanie who is boss!"

Garek was now searching the room. "Here we are, Lightbringer! We must destroy it at once," he urged. "Nenye cast your fire magic on this and forever melt it so it may never be seen on this planet again." Nenye did just that, she sent spurs of red-hot flames, engulfing the sword, and when the fire disappeared, so it was that the sword was gone.

Trion held his head down. "I can't believe such a weapon could hold so much evil, and I was going to unsheathe it."

Strifer nodded. "Yes. That would have been disastrous, for your kingdom and us. It's all thanks to your sister that you did not draw the sword."

Trion turned and walked towards the door. "We must find a way out of here, Curilla and the others must still be trying to find me."

Before Trion could leave the room, Curilla entered along with Rahal and the others. Curilla ran up to Trion and hugged him while Trion embraced it. "I thought we had lost you, my prince." She said, signs of tears rolling down her cheeks.

Trion patted her back. "There is nothing to fear now, Lightbringer is destroyed and the Orcs' plan foiled. We must return to San d'Oria to discuss this with my father.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8: The Return Home

Trion, Curilla, Rahal, Strifer, Deaths Blessing, Tracy Lou, Zinadae, Nenye and Garek, along with soldiers of the San d'Orian army, walked through the streets of San d'Oria, marching towards the castle, with nothing but cheering Elvaan in the crowd.

They had finally arrived at the castle. King Destin was overjoyed to see Trion. "My son has returned! Quickly, prepare a feast!"

Trion smiled. "Yes father, I am back. The Lightbringer is destroyed, as well as the Orc leaders."

Destin nodded. "It was wise to destroy Lightbringer, now no one else may use its terrible power."

Trion looked at Curilla. "Father, I want to know how you'd feel about a new princess."

Destin was shocked. "A new princess? You mean, you getting married?"

Trion nodded. "Precisely father, I wish to marry the general of the royal knights, Curilla. You must see to the wedding plans right away."

Destin was overjoyed but very nervous at the same time. "What…me? It's your wedding, you see to the plans!" He then walked over to Curilla, who was now sobbing with joy. "My dear, a whole new life awaits you as Princess, are you sure you want to do this? Do you love my son?"

She replied, tears still streaming down her face. "Yes I do, and I would not want to be with anybody else."

Destin was glad to hear the news. "Excellent! We will have the wedding arrangements seen to at once!"

He then walked towards Strifer and the others. "This kingdom owes you six very much! I am pleased that you came when you did. It's sad to say, but without you, none of this would have been possible." He then walked up to his stand and grabbed off of it a San d'Oria flag. "Take this flag, it will show that you are in favor by the royal family and any Elvaan that sees this will be glad to help you on anything you may need." He then walked towards Trion and Curilla, and then looked back at Strifer. "I know you must be drifters, but would you please accompany us to King Ranperre's Tomb, where you found the Lightbringer. We may be able to talk to Ranperre's spirit."

Zinadae stepped forward. "Will we have to fight another dragon?" he asked. They all laughed at Zinadae's funny remark.

They were now deep within Ranperre's Tomb where they had fought the dragon, and were this time accompanied by the Papsque, The King, Prince Trion and Pieuje, Lady Curilla, Sir Rahal, Rochefogne and Princess Claidie. When they had arrived by the tomb, lying next to it was Lightbringer. "What? Didn't we destroy that thing?" said Strifer.

Nenye looked at it and said. "Yeah, I melted it with my flames!"

"This must be some form of sorcery," Said Garek.

Suddenly, a voice boomed and could be heard all around them and everyone drew their weapons. Strifer scanned the area while his arrow was notched in his bow. "No paladin, it is not sorcery! It is my sword and it shall forever be my sword. No form of magic will be able to destroy it!" Just then, the spirit of Ranperre appeared in front of them.

They were all shocked. "King Ranperre?" asked Destin.

The voice boomed again. "Yes my descendant, I see that you have kept the kingdom in order since I have been gone." He then turned and picked up Lightbringer. "I have seen how much destruction was almost caused by this sword, so I shall take it with me to the spirit world where, not only I, but the mighty power of Lightbringer can rest in peace. He then turned to Strifer. "You and your friends have done a great deed for this kingdom; it shall always be remembered, even in the afterlife." Strifer nodded and Ranperre disappeared.

Now back at the castle, Strifer and the others said their goodbyes to the King and two princes, as well as the Papsque, Curilla, and Rahal, but Princess Claidie and Rochefogne were nowhere to be found. "Your great deeds will always be remembered. Safe travels to you, my friend," Said Trion.

Curilla smiled. "Thank you for all your assistance, a lot of this would not have been possible without you. I bid all of you farewell."

Trion and Curilla then walked to the back of the room. Destin came forward. "I'm sorry my daughter is not here to say goodbye to you. Must be out there looking for Rochefogne I suppose."

"What happened to him?" asked Strifer.

"Let's just say he isn't coming back." Winked the King, "We talked, and he decided he needed to follow his own path… but enough of that…Good luck to you and your comrades, Strifer, and god speed. He then saluted them as well as all of the members of the court of San d'Oria. Strifer and the others saluted back and then turned and walked out of the castle.

While leaving the streets of San d'Oria, they spotted Claidie searching for Rochefogne. "Sorry I was not there to bid you farewell, but good luck in your travels." She kissed Strifer, Zinadae, Deaths Blessing, and Garek and put tiny flowers in Tracy Lou and Nenye's hair. "You haven't seen him, have you?"

"Not since we came back from Ranperre's tomb," Said Strifer, who was a little intoxicated by Princess Claidie's kiss.

"Well, if you see him, give him this for me." She then kissed Strifer on the lips.

Strifer was a little dizzy and uncoordinated from the kiss he had just received from the Princess. "I will! But, for some reason, I don't think it will mean the same coming from me."

She laughed. "Well, tell him I kissed him then."

Strifer nodded. "Will do, good day, princess." After everyone else had said their goodbyes to the Princess, they all headed for the gate, and to their astonishment saw Rochefogne walking the same way. "Hey Rochefogne, the princess wants me to tell you that she gave you a kiss."

Rochefogne was dumbfounded. "What? Oh never mind. So she understands why I have to go then. I am glad to hear that. I would stay in San d'Oria, but there are too many sins that I have to seek redemption from. I have a feeling that our paths will cross once again someday. I look forward to it. There is not much that I can say because I must be on my way, but good luck and good travels to you, Strifer."

He then turned and walked off. Strifer thought for a second "You know, I'm pretty sure that they're seeking adventurers in Bastok. You guys up for another adventure?"

"Hell yeah!" answered Solamis, determination in his voice.

"I'll follow you, Strifer. You just point the direction!" smiled Nenye.

"Now that we're reunited, I guess I have no choice. After all, I don't want us to separate again." Deaths Blessing gave a friendly grin.

"To righteousness and glory!" shouted Garek, unsheathing his sword and thrusting it into the air above him.

"And let the monsters beware!" cried Tracy Lou, hands on her hips.

Strifer smiled, nodded, and started out into the sunset as they all began their long journey to the industrialized Republic of Bastok


End file.
